TechnoTV.NET

Hippies In 60s

During the 1960's a radical group called
the Hippies shocked America with theiralternative lifestyles and radical
beliefs. Through out history the world has seen
some generations that have made an impactmore than all of its predecessors.
The decade from 1960 to 1970 was definitelyone of those eras. The people
didn't follow the teachings of its elders, butrejected them for an
alternative culture which was their very own(Harris 14).

Made up of the
younger population of the time this new culture was such aradical society
that they were given their own name which is still used today.

They came
to be called the Hippies. The Hippie movement started in San

Francisco,
California and spread across the United States, through Canada, andinto
parts of Europe (World Book). But it had its greatest influence in
America.

During the 1960's a radical group called the Hippies shocked
America with theiralternative lifestyle and radical beliefs. Hippies came
from many differentplaces and had many different backgrounds. All Hippies
were young, from the agesof 15 to 25 (Worldbook). They left their families
and did it for many differentreasons. Some rejected their parents' ideas,
some just wanted to get away, andothers simply were outcasts, who could only
fit in with the Hippie population."Under 25 became a magical age, and young
people all over the world wereunited by this bond" (Harris 15). This bond
was of Non-conformity and itwas the "Creed of the Young" (Harris 15). Most
Hippies came fromwealthy middle class families. Some people said that they
were spoiled andwasting their lives away. But to Hippies themselves this was
a way of life andno one was going to get in the way of their dreams and
ambitions. Hippiesflocked to a certain area of San Francisco on the corner
of Haight Street and

Ashbury Street, where the world got their first view
of this unique group. Thisplace came to be known as the Haight Ashbury
District. There were tours of thedistrict and it was said that the tour "was
the only foreign tour withinthe continental limits of the United States"
(Stern 147). The Hippies wereso different that the conservative middle class
could not relate to them and sawthem as aliens. The Haight Ashbury district
lies in the very center of San

Francisco. In the years of 1965 and 1966
the Hippies took over the Haight

Ashbury district(Cavan 49). There they
lived and spread their psychedelic themethrough out the whole area. In the
Haight Ashbury district there were two parksthat that all Hippies knew well.
The most famous of the two was the Golden Gate

Park(Cavan 43). The single
most important event that put the Hippies on the mapwas held at the Golden
Gate Park. It was called the Trips Festival. The Trips

Festival was a
week long festival designed to celebrate the LSD experience(Stern

148).
Besides this festival dozens of other events took place at Golden
Gate

Park, some of which were free concerts by The Grateful Dead and
Jefferson

Airplane and Anti-War rallies held by Hippie political leaders.
The other parkis called the Buena Vista park and is known for housing
hippies at night and forsocializing during the day. As the 1960's
progressed, the youth in Americaunited. "In 1969 400,000 young people
materialized for three dizzying daysto listen to rock and blues music, to
wear funny clothing or no clothes at all,to talk, sing, dance, clap hands,
to drink beer or smoke pot and make love-butmostly to marvel again and again
that they were all there together" (This

Fabulous Century 64). This
festival was held in a small town in up-state New

York and came to be
called Woodstock, after the town it was held in. Also in

Greenwich
Village, New York Hippies had a place. The Village on every Sunday wasknown
to have hordes of singers with banjos and drums celebrating their
youthtogether(Stern 103). One of the basic foundations of the Hippie
movement was theflagrant use of illegal drugs. There were many drugs that
the Hippies used butnone was more used then marijuana. From 1960 to 1970 the
number of Americans whohad tried marijuana had increased from a few hundred
thousand to 8,000,000. Themajority of these new users were from 12 years old
to college seniors(This

Fabulous Century 84). To some Hippies, drugs and
music were the most importantaspects of their lives. Another drug that was
prevalent in the Hippie populationwas LSD. Some Hippies thought that "LSD
puts you in touch with yoursurroundings" (Cavan 114). But that was not what
always the case. Onoccasion a hippie would take bad LSD and would experience
a "bad trip"or would "freak out" (Cavan 115). When someone took bad LSD,
freak outis exactly what they would do and sometimes they never came back.
Bad LSD was socommon that even at Woodstock people were having bad trips and
freaking out.

Even with this bad LSD everywhere people still used it,
they went as far as tomake a religion out of it. A man by the name of Dr.
Timothy Leary was a Harvardprofessor who had ideas about LSD. He said "LSD
is western yoga. The aim ofall Eastern religion, like the aim of LSD, is
basically to get high; that is toexpand your consciousness and find ecstasy
and revelation within" (This

Fabulous Century 84). Another preacher of
the use of LSD was an author by thename of Ken Keasey. He traveled around
the United States in a psychedelic busgiving LSD to anyone and everyone who
would take it. Hippies were notorious forthere out of the ordinary music.
Many Hippies were actually musiciansthemselves. Hippies used music as a way
to get their thoughts and ideas out. Oneof the most influential musicians of
the time was Bob Dylan. The lyrics of thesong "Like Rolling Stone" express
the thoughts of many Hippies. Theysay: How does it feel; How does it feel To
be without a home Like a completeunknown Like a rolling stone?(Harris 69)
These lyrics expressed Dylan's personalthoughts to what was happening to
him. He did feel "like a rollingstone" and so did his peers. His simple but
meaningful lyrics are what madehim so popular and successful. Many Hippies
considered Dylan as a spokesman fortheir beliefs. Drugs were also themes in
many bands songs. Jimmy Hendrix's"Purple Haze" is about marijuana. "Lucy in
the Sky with

Diamonds," is a Beatles song about LSD. The Grateful Dead
also took part inthe fad with their song "Casey Jones," with lyrics such as
"Highon Cocaine" and "You better watch your Speed." Besides theirmusic
and drugs Hippies did some out of the ordinary things that were asshocking
as their day-glo clothing. It was common for hippies in the
Haight

Ashbury District to put a nickel in a parking meter, then set up
blankets andlie down in the space for a half hour(Stern 161). This was
unusual behavior soit is not strange that the public did not take them
seriously. "Peoplethought Hippies were the next funniest thing to the Three
Stooges"(Stern

161). Television shows like the successful Laugh In made
fun of this counterculture. Movies made fun of them as well. One called the
Presidents Analyst wasextremely successful. The movie was dedicated "to the
life, liberty, andpursuit of happenings," and was based on the Hippies wacky
antics. Peopleall over the America were outraged at how strange these people
were and at thesame time were in tears at how funny they were. Even though
from afar the

Hippies were entertaining, in reality they were devastating
the American familyand were tearing the country in two. While the adults of
the time wereconservative, hard working, and caring mainly about money, the
Hippies didn'tcare about any of that. They were party animals. Many didn't
work unless it wascompletely necessary, they never went to church nor did
they care for savingtheir virginity until after they were married. They were
anything butconservative and their families rejected them for it. Hippies
easy goingattitudes and fun and games lifestyles were put away when the
topic of politicscame up. Indubitably the instigator for their existence,
politics played a hugerole in their lives. Having strongest feelings for the
Vietnam War and for the

Civil Rights Movement, the Hippies made their
beliefs known to the world. Theydid this in many ways including musical
shows, pacifist folk songs, and throughpeaceful sit-ins(This Fabulous
Century 206). But none of their actions were moreseen and heard of then
their protests and rallies. The Hippies were aware thatthe war was being
lost and that thousands of American soldiers were dying. Theytook it upon
themselves the make their beliefs heard. They put together aprotest larger
then the ever before. Once organized not just Hippies came, butstudents,
intellectuals, radicals, and citizens of all classes took part in it(Harris
36). This protest was held in Washington DC in the heart of the
United

States. 250,000 protesters gathered for one common goal. They
wanted theirtroops to come back home and for United States involvement in
the war to beended. Through the years of the Vietnam War hundreds a anti-war
rallies wereheld. By the decades end protests seemed to have done some good.
Sixty fivepercent of all Americans had similar views as the hippies(This
Fabulous Century

206). They wanted their troops back and that's what they
got in the 1969 whenthe President gave the word to bring them back home.
Hippies had other feelingsabout racism and persecution. They took part in
the civil rights movement, justas they did in the for the Vietnam troops.
When President Kennedy tried to passhis Civil Rights policies and they never
went through, the Hippies were moreaggravated (Harris 8) Eventually some
Hippies tried to make their colonies wherethere was no racism and
persecution. There were Hippie communes all over the

United States. Some
communes believed that they were "fighting against thewhite man's perverted
society of pollution ,war, and greed (Stern 166). Thesecommunes didn't get
very popular and failed after a few years. Hippies stillfought for racial
equality. Finally when the 1960's were over new laws were putinto action
helping racial equality which would not have happened without
the

Hippies. During the 1960's a radical group called the hippies shocked
Americawith their alternative lifestyle and radical beliefs. They were young
people whoenjoyed life to its fullest. They used illegal drugs and listened
to rock androll music. With their alternative beliefs and practices they
stunned America'sconservative middle class. Concerned chiefly protesting the
Vietnam War and withcivil rights they made a huge impact on the America and
the world. Even todaythe effects of the Hippie movement is still felt. They
made huge advantages andset examples for the youth of today and years to
come.